State Rep. Binienda pushes for tax credits for video gaming

In what could help boost the video game programs at Worcester colleges such as Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) and Becker College, state Rep. John Binienda, D-Worcester, this week once more voiced support for tax incentives for the state's video game industry.

A student at MassDIGI at Becker College in Worcester takes part in a summer video game production program

In testimony at the Statehouse on Tuesday, Sept. 10 the longtime state lawmaker spoke in favor of House Bill 2511, "An act relative to increasing economic development and business opportunity in the design and manufacture of video games through the use of tax credits." The bill would apply the 25-percent income tax credit currently available for movie productions in Massachusetts to all digital gaming produced in the state. It would extend to games accessed via console, personal computer and cell phones.

“With these incentives, Massachusetts will facilitate an ideal climate in which this industry can thrive,” Binienda, the bill's chief sponsor, testified to the Joint Committee on Revenue. “We are already doing well as a state in terms of training aspiring video game designers and developers. I adamantly believe, however, that this proposal will ensure that we retain the talented individuals we need here in Massachusetts to start companies, create jobs, and grow our economy.”

Binienda's push is buoyed by a 2o10 report by The Entertainment Software Association, titled "Video Games in the 21st Century: The 2010 Report," which notes that Massachusetts has the fifth largest concentration of computer and video game production in the country, employing roughly 1,300 people and contributing about $1.8 billion to the state's economy. Worcester would stand poised to benefit from the tax credits because at least two of its colleges - WPI and Becker - have programs that focus on video game design. The Massachusetts Digital Games Institute (MassDIGI) is based at Becker, where several students from colleges around New England and beyond recently completed a summer program. Twenty states currently offer some form of incentives for video design companies, according to Binienda, including Texas and California.

“Between our educational institutions and our preeminent innovation economy, there’s no reason we should not be number one,” Binienda says. “These incentives will get us there.”